Yes it is fun to ride on
all those little cable cars
see Alcatraz and Golden Gate
those cafes, shops and bars
but stepping off the tourist trail
things seen are not so pretty –
left trying to forget all those
mean streets in that fair city
the dust, the dirt, the poverty
those insults thrown, words shouted
lost souls seeming worlds apart
whose sanity one doubted
post traumatic stress victims
drunks sleep it off in trams
drug deals go down in doorways
bag ladies with their prams
even Union Square has problems
homeless people numbering scores
despite the rich and famous
spending huge in high end stores
staying close to well lit areas
seek where to find the places
mapped as ‘sights not to be missed’
thus avoiding hostile faces
Yes, all cities have their dark side
but it’s in knowing what you’ve got
I believed you Tony Bennett
…. and romantic IT IS NOT!
